Memphis International Airport

The ticketing level of the Memphis International Airport in Tennessee is nearly deserted at night, unlike during daytime hours when the area is always bustling with activity.

Last week, we went to the airport along with some others from our church to greet Gary and Michelle Ford when they arrived from Bangkok, Thailand to spend some time in the United States. Their flight wasn’t scheduled to arrive until around 10:20 PM, so we arrived there just before 10:00. As you can see, there weren’t that many people there. And I’m guessing that after the flight that the Fords were on had arrived, there were even fewer people there, because most of those that were there seemed to be waiting on the same flight that we were waiting on.

I had taken my camera to get a few photos of the Fords, and while we waited, I thought I would fill the time by taking a couple of general photos. Jaylin and I went up to the second level walkway that surrounds the main level. Jaylin wanted to look out the windows to see the planes, and I wanted to get a different perspective of the area for my photo. Laura chose to wait down at the main level while we explored. That’s her sitting in one of the groups of four chairs just below the center of the photo, if you are wondering.

I have always enjoyed going to the airport. Going there this time reminded me of the times we went there to pick up my dad from business trips as a kid, and of the times I have left to go different places such as Jamaica or Bangkok. It is always interesting to wonder where the people there are coming and going. Of course, it is different now that you can’t go down to the gates where the planes are, but it is still an interesting place to go.

If you look above the door at the left of the photo, you may be able to see that it says “Danny Thomas Terminal,” as the terminal was named after the famous actor and founder of St. Jude Hospital, which is also located in Memphis. That reminds me of one of those airport visits when I was a kid, and I noticed a large crowd surrounding someone. As we got closer, I saw that it was Danny Thomas himself, greeting a crowd as he was leaving or arriving. Pretty cool.

I don’t fly all that often, so an airport visit is actually pretty rare for me. Glad that we had the chance to go this time!

And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.” - Genesis 1:20

About the Photo

After working on this photo in color for a while, I decided to give black and white a try, and I really liked the way that it turned out. The only downside is that the large American flag hanging in the center doesn’t quite jump out at you as much, and you can’t tell that the columns outside the left window are lit in red and green lights for Christmas. But otherwise I think black and white works well here. I keep telling myself to try black and white more, but I usually like the colors too much to make the switch. Somehow, transportation always seems to call out for black and white to me.

Photo: A single RAW exposure, processed in Photoshop. Read more about the photo software and gear I use at the camera gear page.
Camera: Olympus OM-D E-M10
Lens: Olympus M.Zukio 25mm f1.8
Date: December 10, 2015
Location: International Airport, Memphis, Tennessee